Classic side-scrolling beat-'em-up Streets of Rage is now available on mobile as part of the Sega Forever retro games service. It supports local, two-player co-operative fisticuffs over wi-fi, and even works cross-platform between iOS and Android devices.

Streets of Rage, for the benefit of those too young or too pre-occupied at the time to remember, released on Mega Drive in 1991, and was the first instalment in what would eventually become a trilogy of Streets of Rage beat-'em-ups. It includes much denim.

Streets of Rage notably featured co-operative multiplayer brawling, with two players able to choose from the chiselled core trio of Axel Stone, Blaze Fielding, and Adam Hunter as they battled across the city in search of the nefarious Mr. X.

The new mobile incarnation replicates the original's two-player mode over wi-fi, and is the first emulated Sega Forever title to offer multiplayer.

Like all other game on the Sega Forever service, Streets of Rage is free to play with ads, or can pay a couple of quid to have them permanently removed for a slightly more unfettered retro experience. It also features leaderboards, cloud saves, and controller support.

I remember being a child and my grandmother had gone on a cruise. She knew nothing about consoles/games as people her vintage didnt, but she knew I loved these things. Anyway she picked me up a Sega MegaDrive (Genesis in the US) with Streets of Rage and some F1 racing game. I remember her coming off the boat, handing it to me and I couldnt wait to get home! To this day only console i spent significant time on (always been a PC gamer)

I did run into some problems later in the life cycle of the MegaDrive, the used slightly different sized cartridges to stop people importing games from elsewhere... Mine being a asian version it wouldnt play some of the newer local games. Still loved it. Also remember the day when my friend came over with Streets of Rage 2.

I don't quite understand. Why "Streets of Rage" and not "Streets of Rage 2"? Isn't that the more famous one that SEGA ported to all consoles a couple years ago? I think I have it on PS3, but I'm not sure. Always was more of a Capcom person myself. "Final Fight", "Cadillacs & Dinosaurs", "The Punisher" and "Alien vs. Predator"... aaah, those were the days!

I remember being a child and my grandmother had gone on a cruise. She knew nothing about consoles/games as people her vintage didnt, but she knew I loved these things. Anyway she picked me up a Sega MegaDrive (Genesis in the US) with Streets of Rage and some F1 racing game. I remember her coming off the boat, handing it to me and I couldnt wait to get home! To this day only console i spent significant time on (always been a PC gamer)

I did run into some problems later in the life cycle of the MegaDrive, the used slightly different sized cartridges to stop people importing games from elsewhere... Mine being a asian version it wouldnt play some of the newer local games. Still loved it. Also remember the day when my friend came over with Streets of Rage 2.

I remember being a child and my grandmother had gone on a cruise. She knew nothing about consoles/games as people her vintage didnt, but she knew I loved these things. Anyway she picked me up a Sega MegaDrive (Genesis in the US) with Streets of Rage and some F1 racing game. I remember her coming off the boat, handing it to me and I couldnt wait to get home! To this day only console i spent significant time on (always been a PC gamer)

I did run into some problems later in the life cycle of the MegaDrive, the used slightly different sized cartridges to stop people importing games from elsewhere... Mine being a asian version it wouldnt play some of the newer local games. Still loved it. Also remember the day when my friend came over with Streets of Rage 2.

This has put a smile on my face

Awesome, thank you for sharing. Grandparents are the greatest.

My best friend in Elementary School had Genesis, and we played the hell out of Streets of Rage 2. I still love to listen to the soundtrack every now and again; it still holds up. Even bought it on vinyl, but I don't have a record player.

I don't quite understand. Why "Streets of Rage" and not "Streets of Rage 2"? Isn't that the more famous one that SEGA ported to all consoles a couple years ago? I think I have it on PS3, but I'm not sure. Always was more of a Capcom person myself. "Final Fight", "Cadillacs & Dinosaurs", "The Punisher" and "Alien vs. Predator"... aaah, those were the days!

Sega seems intent on pacing themselves with these releases. I’ve downloaded every one and then remembered that they play like crap without a joystick. Except Crazy Taxi. That controls amazingly.